Portland showcase features handmade bikes

Michael Lloyd/The OregonianPaul Sylvester of Portland gets the lowdown from mountain bike builder Jeff Jones (left, back to camera) of Medford on Friday at the start of Oregon Manifest, an event showcasing handmade bicycles. The event continues from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. today at Leftbank Project, 1618 N. Vancouver Ave., in Portland.

Ken Tomita got his first road bike two weeks ago but insists he's not "really into bicycles at all."

Still, the Southeast Portland 30-year-old liked a lot of what he saw Friday at Oregon Manifest, a two-day showcase of handmade bikes at Leftbank Project, 1618 N. Vancouver Ave., in Portland.

"I really like seeing people who take things to the limit, who customize or do innovative things with new materials," Tomita said. "So I'm here to check out what people have done."

Austin Ramsland, who owns Sweetpea Bicycles with his wife, Natalie, helped organize the event in cooperation with the Portland Development Commission, Chris King Precision Components and others.

The event is quintessentially Portland, Ramsland said, recognizing the city's expanding bicycle community and do-it-yourself culture.

"There's this spirit of craft," he said. "Everything that you see here is made with two hands. And with that comes culture and community. You've got a bike community here that's supports that."

The Portland-based vendors as well as cyclists attracted Tim Coughlan, 30, who moved here from New York City 15 months ago.

"I just came to browse," Coughlan said. "I'm just really into the fact that Portland is such a progressive cycling city. ... All these local builders really push the envelope as far as design, creativity, art and function."

A craftsman's approach

Tomita, who runs a custom furniture company, said the show brings together people who take a craftsman's approach in a mass-produced society.

"I think it's amazing that our society -- at least in Portland -- is going in the other direction," he said, "toward locally made, high quality, instead of cheap and fast and disposable."

The show continues from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. today. Admission is $10; free for children younger than 12.

Anyone with a custom bike is invited to "give it some love, polish it up and ride it to the show," organizers said. Reserved parking will be available just outside to display the special rides. More bike parking will be available nearby.

Along with the show, races will be run from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday on Southwest Ravenna Loop in the Villebois section of Wilsonville. Entry fee is $22 a race.